Published: Wednesday, March 26, 2014 at 2:15 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, March 26, 2014 at 2:15 p.m.

PUNTA GORDA - Hurricane Charley devastated parts of Charlotte County when it made landfall nearly a decade ago.

The August 2004 storm, and the real estate collapse that followed three years later, crippled much of Charlotte's economy.

But now, with tourism and the state's coastal population on the rise, a main airport rebounding and businesses returning, the county appears to be shedding at least some of the memories of the Category 4 storm.

After laying dormant for years, a collection of industrial properties surrounding the airport — some owned by the airport, others by developers — is catching on.

“We wouldn't be expanding at Punta Gorda (Airport) if we hadn't seen it was just an enormous success,” said Jessica Wheeler, a spokeswoman for Allegiant Airlines, which now flies to Charlotte County from nearly two dozen U.S. cities weekly, five years after kicking off service there.

Especially in the winter months, when tourists flock to Southwest Florida for sunshine, a warm respite from the cold, spring training baseball and to see family and friends, Punta Gorda Airport has become jammed with travelers.

They come from places like Allentown, Pa.; Islip, N.Y.; and Asheville, N.C., part of an Allegiant strategy to provide service to customers in underserved areas.

Last fall, Allegiant — the airport's lone carrier — ramped up flights so much that airport officials were prompted to create a modular waiting room out of eight trailers to handle the airline's crowds.

But Allegiant isn't the only business growing in Charlotte.

Cheney Brothers, a Riviera Beach-based food distributor, is building a $50-million-plus distribution center on land the Federal Emergency Management Agency had used to establish a trailer park for hurricane victims.

The company bought the 37 acres the center will sit on — across from the airport — in 2011, and broke ground on its building earlier this month.

“It is very centrally located to distribute to the west coast of Florida, everything from Tampa south to Everglades City,” said Warren Newell, Cheney's project manager.

By summer 2015, Cheney plans to be operational in Punta Gorda. The company's initial payroll target is 380 workers, with plans to eventually expand employment to 600.

But there, too, Cheney represents one piece of a larger economic development puzzle that encompasses 4,300 industrially zoned acres that surround the airport.

Charlotte County Economic Development officials have begun marketing the property as the “Punta Gorda Interstate Airport Park.”

“Publix bought 87 acres from us,” said Gary Quill, executive director of the Charlotte County Airport Authority, which oversees the Punta Gorda airport. “Cheney bought 37 acres from the county. The big boys do their homework, and the little guys will follow over time.”

A third company, Southeastern Freight Lines, has invested $12 million into an eventual trucking terminal near the airport, Quill added.

Ironically, the impetus for much of the economic development was the destructive force of Hurricane Charley.

After initially appearing as if it would slam into Sarasota or Tampa, the storm — with sustained winds of 140 mph — made an unexpected hook into Charlotte Harbor.

In the hours that followed, it laid waste to parts of Punta Gorda and sections of Arcadia before losing steam in the middle of the state.

The devastation at the airport was particularly intense. Of 25 buildings, 16 were totally destroyed. The other nine were heavily damaged.

“Not that I ever want to go through another hurricane, because I don't,” Quill said. “But in hindsight, it worked out for us.”

This summer, with anticipated help from an $11.3 million grant from the national airport improvement trust fund, the airport authority plans to more than triple the size of its terminal, to roughly 50,000 square feet.

The addition would supplant the eight trailers the authority has been using for Allegiant passengers.

Hurricane Charley also sparked a boom in commercial property development around the airport. But in time, developers overbuilt and found themselves underwater when the economy went bust, just like many boom-time home buyers.

Among those who got caught was Larry Bailie. He had moved to Charlotte County together with his wife in 2006 to run a commercial and industrial real estate office for Foundation Realty.

When the boom ended, Bailie tried to hold on.

“I kept saying, 'It is going to turn, it is going to turn, it is going to turn,' ” Bailie recalls.

The market has, but not quickly enough for Bailie. Today, he sells property in Naples, a market he considers “a little more resilient.”

Realtors say buyers like the Freys — and those in higher purchase price brackets — are having a measurable impact on Charlotte County's real estate market.

Jerry Hayes, a Re/Max Anchor agent, says sales have taken off in the upscale Punta Gorda Isles neighborhood and other upper-end communities, in part because of the increased airport activity.

“I think Allegiant has definitely helped. It has opened up the market,” Hayes said.

He made three sales within the past year that he attributes directly to Allegiant's increased flights, including a $640,000 sale in December to a couple from Long Island that came here via the discount carrier.

A few months earlier, Hayes represented a woman from Illinois who bought a home and nearby lot for $575,000 with sailboat-access in Punta Gorda Isles.

Hayes believes more buyers are recognizing the value of Charlotte County because more are being exposed to the county — through Allegiant.

“It will always be the best deal on the curve, from Tampa to Naples, because they are directly on the Gulf of Mexico,” Hayes said.

That same property in Naples or Sarasota, he points out, would be much more expensive.

<p><em>PUNTA GORDA</em> - Hurricane Charley devastated parts of Charlotte County when it made landfall nearly a decade ago.</p><p>The August 2004 storm, and the real estate collapse that followed three years later, crippled much of Charlotte's economy.</p><p>But now, with tourism and the state's coastal population on the rise, a main airport rebounding and businesses returning, the county appears to be shedding at least some of the memories of the Category 4 storm.</p><p>After laying dormant for years, a collection of industrial properties surrounding the airport — some owned by the airport, others by developers — is catching on. </p><p>“We wouldn't be expanding at Punta Gorda (Airport) if we hadn't seen it was just an enormous success,” said Jessica Wheeler, a spokeswoman for Allegiant Airlines, which now flies to Charlotte County from nearly two dozen U.S. cities weekly, five years after kicking off service there.</p><p>Especially in the winter months, when tourists flock to Southwest Florida for sunshine, a warm respite from the cold, spring training baseball and to see family and friends, Punta Gorda Airport has become jammed with travelers. </p><p>They come from places like Allentown, Pa.; Islip, N.Y.; and Asheville, N.C., part of an Allegiant strategy to provide service to customers in underserved areas.</p><p>Last fall, Allegiant — the airport's lone carrier — ramped up flights so much that airport officials were prompted to create a modular waiting room out of eight trailers to handle the airline's crowds.</p><p>But Allegiant isn't the only business growing in Charlotte.</p><p>Cheney Brothers, a Riviera Beach-based food distributor, is building a $50-million-plus distribution center on land the Federal Emergency Management Agency had used to establish a trailer park for hurricane victims.</p><p>The company bought the 37 acres the center will sit on — across from the airport — in 2011, and broke ground on its building earlier this month.</p><p>“It is very centrally located to distribute to the west coast of Florida, everything from Tampa south to Everglades City,” said Warren Newell, Cheney's project manager.</p><p>By summer 2015, Cheney plans to be operational in Punta Gorda. The company's initial payroll target is 380 workers, with plans to eventually expand employment to 600.</p><p>But there, too, Cheney represents one piece of a larger economic development puzzle that encompasses 4,300 industrially zoned acres that surround the airport.</p><p>Charlotte County Economic Development officials have begun marketing the property as the “Punta Gorda Interstate Airport Park.”</p><p>“Publix bought 87 acres from us,” said Gary Quill, executive director of the Charlotte County Airport Authority, which oversees the Punta Gorda airport. “Cheney bought 37 acres from the county. The big boys do their homework, and the little guys will follow over time.”</p><p>A third company, Southeastern Freight Lines, has invested $12 million into an eventual trucking terminal near the airport, Quill added. </p><p>Ironically, the impetus for much of the economic development was the destructive force of Hurricane Charley.</p><p>After initially appearing as if it would slam into Sarasota or Tampa, the storm — with sustained winds of 140 mph — made an unexpected hook into Charlotte Harbor. </p><p>In the hours that followed, it laid waste to parts of Punta Gorda and sections of Arcadia before losing steam in the middle of the state.</p><p>The devastation at the airport was particularly intense. Of 25 buildings, 16 were totally destroyed. The other nine were heavily damaged.</p><p>“Not that I ever want to go through another hurricane, because I don't,” Quill said. “But in hindsight, it worked out for us.”</p><p>This summer, with anticipated help from an $11.3 million grant from the national airport improvement trust fund, the airport authority plans to more than triple the size of its terminal, to roughly 50,000 square feet.</p><p>The addition would supplant the eight trailers the authority has been using for Allegiant passengers.</p><p>Hurricane Charley also sparked a boom in commercial property development around the airport. But in time, developers overbuilt and found themselves underwater when the economy went bust, just like many boom-time home buyers.</p><p>Among those who got caught was Larry Bailie. He had moved to Charlotte County together with his wife in 2006 to run a commercial and industrial real estate office for Foundation Realty. </p><p>When the boom ended, Bailie tried to hold on.</p><p>“I kept saying, 'It is going to turn, it is going to turn, it is going to turn,' ” Bailie recalls. </p><p>The market has, but not quickly enough for Bailie. Today, he sells property in Naples, a market he considers “a little more resilient.”</p><p>Conversely, Lamont Frey sees little but upside in Charlotte County real estate.</p><p>A long-distance truck driver from Tamaqua, Pa., Frey recently traveled to Punta Gorda via an Allegiant flight from Allentown, Pa., to scout out a retirement home.</p><p>He and his wife intend to retire in a few years, and want to have a place to come to when they do. They settled on a three-bedroom home in Englewood listed for $130,000.</p><p>“I just want to work two more years and call it quits,” Frey said. “This is the best bang for our buck.”</p><p>Frey and his wife's move will likely spur others to follow them.</p><p>His wife's mother, who is 85, intends to join them when they move. So does Frey's 27-year-old son, who plans to seek a job in the hospitality or hospital food service fields.</p><p>“My daughter and her boyfriend might come down later, too,” Frey added.</p><p>Realtors say buyers like the Freys — and those in higher purchase price brackets — are having a measurable impact on Charlotte County's real estate market.</p><p>Jerry Hayes, a Re/Max Anchor agent, says sales have taken off in the upscale Punta Gorda Isles neighborhood and other upper-end communities, in part because of the increased airport activity.</p><p>“I think Allegiant has definitely helped. It has opened up the market,” Hayes said. </p><p>He made three sales within the past year that he attributes directly to Allegiant's increased flights, including a $640,000 sale in December to a couple from Long Island that came here via the discount carrier.</p><p>A few months earlier, Hayes represented a woman from Illinois who bought a home and nearby lot for $575,000 with sailboat-access in Punta Gorda Isles.</p><p>Hayes believes more buyers are recognizing the value of Charlotte County because more are being exposed to the county — through Allegiant.</p><p>“It will always be the best deal on the curve, from Tampa to Naples, because they are directly on the Gulf of Mexico,” Hayes said. </p><p>That same property in Naples or Sarasota, he points out, would be much more expensive.</p><p>“You're going to be talking almost double the price,” Hayes added.</p><p><empty></p>